Status
Available
Call number
Collections
Publication
Old Earth Books (1993), Paperback, 243 pages
Description
Classic Literature. Fiction. Literature. Mystery. HTML: Author H. Beam Piper attained literary acclaim with his inventive forays into science fiction, but he also tried his hand at the mystery genre. Murder in the Gunroom features a detective whose expertise in antique guns makes him the perfect candidate to crack the case of a collector felled by one of his own weapons..
User reviews
LibraryThing member jjmcgaffey
It's a good story - mystery - in itself, but if you're a Piper fan it's a must-read. Several of the characters in the story have characteristics of Piper himself (there's an antique gun expert and an SF writer for two) and you get the feeling that some of the dialog is autobiographical.
LibraryThing member clews-reviews
The mystery is all right, the details of historical guns worked in with not too much enthusiasm, and there's probably a great roman a clef in the science-fiction-and-antiques couple.
What stuck in my mind was the hero's secret semantic science. I haven't looked up if it actually existed, but it
What stuck in my mind was the hero's secret semantic science. I haven't looked up if it actually existed, but it
Show More
sounds a lot like ever so many systems since, all beloved of a subset of nerds. It introduces itself as a method of not deceiving oneself and turns up later, sullen, as a tool for deceiving others. Show Less
LibraryThing member ScoLgo
Pretty good whodunit but... the lengthy expositions on guns and their features really slowed the pace at times. I suppose if I were a gun collector (I'm not) and had some clue about the various features of guns (I don't) then it might have been more interesting. Instead, I found myself skimming
Oh, and everyone has a 'gun room' in their house? Really? Even for the time it was written, this seems like a rather dated concept.
Show More
those parts. Had Piper stuck with the story/mystery, this would likely have been a 3.5 star read for me.Oh, and everyone has a 'gun room' in their house? Really? Even for the time it was written, this seems like a rather dated concept.
Show Less
Language
Original publication date
1953
Physical description
243 p.; 8.4 inches
ISBN
1882968026 / 9781882968022
DDC/MDS
| Fic Mystery Piper |